The Supreme Court has ordered the resumption of the corruption trial of former Jigawa State Governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido, and his two sons, over an alleged N1.35bn fraud.
In a unanimous decision delivered on Friday by a five-man panel led by Justice Abubakar Sadiq Umar, the apex court overturned a July 2023 judgment of the Court of Appeal which had discharged the defendants.
The Supreme Court upheld the appeal filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), describing it as meritorious, and directed that Lamido and his sons return to the Federal High Court in Abuja to open their defence.
Lamido, his sons, Mustapha and Aminu Wada Abubakar, alongside two companies, Bamaina Holdings Limited and Speeds International Limited, are facing a 37-count amended charge bordering on money laundering and abuse of office before Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court.
According to the EFCC, the former governor, who governed Jigawa State between 2007 and 2015, allegedly laundered N1.35bn in bribes from contractors handling state government projects.
After the prosecution closed its case, the defendants filed a no-case submission, insisting that the anti-graft agency failed to establish a prima facie case against them.
Justice Ojukwu dismissed the application, ruling that the prosecution had presented enough evidence to require the defendants to enter their defence.
However, the Court of Appeal, in July 2023, overturned that decision and struck out the charges, prompting the EFCC to approach the Supreme Court.
The commission argued that the appellate court erred in law by discharging the defendants despite what it described as overwhelming evidence linking them to the alleged offences.
In its judgment, the Supreme Court set aside the ruling of the Court of Appeal, restored the charges and ordered the Federal High Court to continue with the trial.
It also directed Lamido and the other defendants to defend themselves against the allegations.
